Census Is For Counting Not Prying

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The constitutional requirement for the Census is found
in Article. I. Section. 2. Paragraph. 3."The actual
Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the
first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and
within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such
Manner as they shall by Law direct."

The purpose of the Census is that of counting the US
population in order to apportion among the states the
number of representatives in the US House of
Representatives. That`s it. Nothing more. Nothing less.

There is nothing in the Constitution requiring or even
suggesting questions regarding race, ethnicity, whether
one owns or rents his or her home, income status,
disability status, education, or anything of the sort.
The only purpose of the Census is to count the US
population. Anything beyond that is nothing more than an
intrusive government prying and snooping into our lives:
something the federal government is doing with greater
and greater frequency and intensity these days.

As to the phrase,
"[As] they shall by Law direct," Paul Galvin rightly
notes, "This
language merely goes to the mechanics of the counting
(who will do it; when it is to be done; how, when
results are to be reported; and so forth); it does not
enlarge what may be counted. Constitutionally the only
permitted enumeration is the number of people in the
United States. Why? Because that count is the
determinant for apportionment and therefore the only
pertinent information needed."

In the original
Census of 1790,
the information requested was simply the number of
persons in each household and the name of the head of
each family. That`s it. Accordingly, when I filled out
my Census form earlier this week, the only information I
provided was my name (as the head of my household) and
the number of people living in my home. The rest of it I
left blank.

Furthermore, the idea that the information gathered
about us via the unconstitutional and invasive Census
form will not be shared with anyone is so ludicrous it
is laughable. The federal government passes around
virtually everything it learns about us to any number of
departments and agencies. Does anyone really believe
that all the information obtained with this
unconstitutional Census form will be locked away in a
vault somewhere, never to be used or shared? What a
crock! Why, the federal government cannot even ensure
that its own employees will abide by its own rules.

Consider the new full-body scanners that are being
installed in airports all around the country. The
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) assures
passengers that the photos of their naked bodies are not
pornographic and will not be stored or shared. Of
course, we can trust the federal government to tell us
the truth, right?

First, are the images pornographic? You be the judge.
Check out this online story. I caution you, however:
there are actual images of naked bodies taken with an
airport full-body scanner included in this story. But if
you are offended at what you see, remember that this is
potentially what TSA agents will be looking at every
time you, your wife, your son, your daughter, or your
father and mother board a commercial jetliner.

So, will someone please tell me how the scanned images
taken of the naked bodies of small children by these
airport full-body scanners do not constitute child
pornography? Good grief! Some parents have been arrested
for possessing child porn for something as innocent as
taking photos of their small children in a bathtub. Yet,
TSA agents will be photographing nude images of small
children all day long in a private video booth at an
airport check-in, and not only will they not be
arrested, THEY WILL GET PAID FOR IT.

Beyond that, there are already documented cases where
airport screeners have stored and shared the naked
images of people. According to published reports,"Claims on behalf of authorities that naked body scanner images are
immediately destroyed after passengers pass through new
x-ray backscatter devices have been proven fraudulent
after it was revealed that naked images of Indian film
star Shahrukh Khan were printed out and circulated by
airport staff at Heathrow in London."

Would you trust your neighbor–or your friends at church
or work–with photos of your naked body or the naked
bodies of your wife and children? Then, why would you
trust an employee of the federal government? And why
would you trust federal bureaucrats at the Census Bureau
to keep private any and all information you give them
via the Census form?

But whether you care or don`t care that the federal
government sticks its nose into your private affairs–or
that its employees gawk at your naked images–is really
beside the point. The fact is, it is totally
unconstitutional for the federal government to behave in
such a manner, and those citizens who do not object to
this unconstitutional conduct are facilitating the
demise of their own liberties. They should be ashamed of
themselves!

What is even worse is the number of churches that are
cooperating with and facilitating the advancement of
this unconstitutional Census. I see churches in my area
advertising for their congregants to become
Census-takers. Of course, each of these workers will be
schooled in how to cajole or even coerce members of
their communities to participate in an unconstitutional
Census, and to give up personal information that is
absolutely beyond the proper purpose and scope of the
Census. Shame on those churches! Shame on those pastors!

By the way, should a Census worker come to my home and
demand that I answer the questions I left blank, I will
simply plead my 5th Amendment/Miranda rights to"remain silent." What are they going to say to that?

As for me and my house, along with the form completed as
stated above, I put this note in the Census envelope
(this was forwarded to me by an unknown source. I would
give them credit, if I knew who it was)

"Article I, Section 2 of the US Constitution gives
Congress the right to ENUMERATE the number of citizens
in order to apportion members of congress: `The actual
Enumeration shall be made within three years after the
first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and
within every subsequent term of ten years, in such
manner as they shall by law direct.`

"Enumerate means `to count, or determine the number of`.
Congress can COUNT the number of citizens–but it can`t
demand to know what race we are, how much we earn, how
many big screen TVs we own, etc. So when I get the
census forms, I fill out the first question (the one
asking how many people live at my home), then paste a
copy of Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution right
below that, along with a statement that I have fulfilled
my duty as a citizen by helping them enumerate, and I`m
not required to answer any more questions."

Participating in the national Census is an honor for
every US citizen. Each of us should be thankful for the
constitutional republic that was bequeathed to us by our
Founding Fathers. Under that Constitution, therefore, I
am proud to have my household counted in the US Census
in order to apportion among the states the number of
representatives in the US House of Representatives. But,
as I am expected to live under the laws and duties of
the US Constitution, so is the federal government.
Hence, I answered only those two questions that are
constitutionally prescribed and refused to answer any
and all others.

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